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Wednesday, August 14, 2013

Gur Hasidic Rabbi Orders Male Followers Not to Shake Hands With Other Men

The Hasidic sect of Gur was shocked to learn that their
rabbi has issued a ban on handshakes between men as it might lead some to sin.
the Hebrew daily Ma’ariv reported based on a report on a haredi blog

At a recent meeting,
the head of the Gur education department, Rabbi Abraham Benjamin Silberberg, said
that shaking another man’s hand is now prohibited because it can lead to sinful
thoughts.

Rabbi Silberberg notified
education supervisors about the new ruling at the special meeting, and ordered
them to begin educating Gur boys about deviant male handshakes. Silberberg said
that two males are only allowed to touch each other’s fingertips, however, it
is better for men and boys to avoid touching completely.

He also instructed
yeshiva teachers to educate teen boys and young men to avoid touching each
other. “This new prohibition will ensure the holiness of our next generation,”
Silberberg said.

Silberberg allegedly claims that when men shake hands or
have other incidental contact with other men it automatically wakes up the evil
inclination and brings on obscene thoughts, the BaOlam Shel Haredim blog
reportedly wrote.

A few weeks ago,
several rabbis in Bnei Brak issued a ruling that it is prohibited to carry a
groom on one’s shoulders while dancing at weddings. The rabbis said that they
banned the practice after a groom, who was carried on a friend’s shoulders, was
unable to consummate his marriage after the wedding.